Auto stocks outshine in weak market; Nifty Auto up 1%, Bajaj Auto, M&M 2%

March Auto Sale 2025: Royal Enfield recorded one million annual sales in the financial year ending March 31, 2025 (FY25), the highest-ever in the company's history.

Shares of automobile manufacturers were outperforming the stock markets on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. At 10:55 AM, the Nifty Auto index was trading 0.2 per cent higher at 21,338.75 level as against a 221 points (0.9 per cent) fall in the benchmark Nifty50 index. During the intraday trade, the Nifty Auto index hit a high of 21,543.80, rising 1.1 per cent.

 

The strength in the index for automobile and auto ancillary companies came after the companies shared their monthly auto sales update for the month of March 2025. That apart, other corporate actions, like fundraising, also boosted sentiment across counters.

 

Bajaj Auto share price, for instance, gained 2.14 per cent in the intraday trade to hit a high of ₹8,048 per share on the National Stock Exchange (NSE). In a stock exchange filing, Bajaj Auto informed investors that Bajaj Auto International Holdings BV (BAIH BV), a wholly owned subsidiary of Bajaj Auto, has subscribed to Convertible Bonds worth 50 million euros (around ₹461.6 crore) issued by Pierer Bajaj AG (PBAG).  The conversion assumed 1 Euro to be equal to ₹92.32.

 

"BAIH BV has subscribed to Convertible Bonds to facilitate the funding needs of PMA'’s subsidiary, viz. KTM AG, Austria, towards the phased resumption of the production of KTM motorcycles and operating costs," Bajaj Auto said in an update.

 

Notably, BAIH BV holds a 49.9 per cent stake in PBAG, and PBAG holds a 74.94 per cent stake in PMAG.

 

Meanwhile, Eicher Motors share price, on the NSE, climbed 3.3 per cent to ₹5,525 per share after its subsidiary, Royal Enfield, recorded one million annual sales in the financial year ending March 31, 2025 (FY25), the highest-ever in the company's history.

 

The company posted sales of 10,09,900 units in the past financial year, up 11 per cent from FY24. In the month of March 2025, Eicher said Royal Enfield  sales were up 34 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to 1,01,021 units on the back of sustained demand for its capable and diverse products in both domestic and international markets.

 

Royal Enfield's domestic sales grew to 9,02,757 units in FY25, up from 8,34,795 units in FY24, while exports rose 37 per cent Y-o-Y to 1,07,143 units.

 

"On the global front, we're expanding like never before. The launch of our Thailand Assembly Plant and entry into Bangladesh mark important steps in strengthening our international presence. Our new launches this year, including four game-changing motorcycles and our first step into electric mobility with the Flying Flea, have pushed the boundaries of what's possible," said  B Govindarajan, Managing Director, Eicher Motors, and Chief Executive Officer, Royal Enfield.

 

Royal Enfield is a division of Eicher Motors Limited. It operates through more than 2,000 stores across all major cities and towns in India, and through nearly 850 stores in more than 60 countries around the globe.

 

Escorts Kubota share price, too, advanced 1 per cent to a high of ₹3,280 per share after the company said the company's Agri Machinery Business Division sold 11,374 tractors in March 2025, registering a growth of 15 per cent year-on-year.

 

Domestic tractor sales stood at 10,775 tractors in the previous month, up 15.2 per cent as against 9,355 tractors sold in March 2024. Export tractor sales, on the other hand, surged 12.4 per cent to 599 tractors in March 2025, as against 533 tractors sold in March 2024.

 

For the whole of FY25, Escorts sold a total of 1,15,554 tractors, up 1 per cent Y-o-Y over 1,14,396 tractors sold in FY24.

 

Separately, Escorts Kubota's Construction Equipment Business Division sold 614 machines in March 2025 as against 734 machines sold in March 2024. For FY25, the segment clocked a decline of 9.2 per cent Y-o-Y in sales to 6,484 units.

 

"The Construction Equipment (CE) industry is currently experiencing short-term challenges as a result of changes in emission norms, which have led to increased costs for customers. With the Government's unwavering dedication to infrastructure development, we anticipate that this will lay a solid foundation for sustained growth in the construction equipment industry for the fiscal year 2026," the company said in its statement.

 

M&M share price, on the other hand, hit an intraday high of ₹2,728 per share, up 2.3 per cent intraday, after it said that its overall auto sales for the month of March 2025 stood at 83,894 vehicles, logging an increase of 23 per cent Y-o-Y.

 

In the Utility Vehicles segment, M&M sold 48,048 vehicles in the domestic market, up 18 per cent Y-o-Y. Including exports, total sales in the segment were 50,835 units. The domestic sales for Commercial Vehicles stood at 23,951.

 

M & M closed the year with sales of 5,51,487 SUV units, the highest-ever in its history, with a growth of 20 per cent Y-o-Y.

 

"In March, we sold a total of 48,048 SUVs, with a growth of 18 per cent, and 83,894 total vehicles, a 23-per cent growth over last year. We also started the deliveries of our Electric Origin SUVs, where we see a strong continued demand momentum. The year ended on a very positive note with us selling over 5 lakh SUVs in the domestic market for the first time ever," said Veejay Nakra, President, Automotive Division, M&M Ltd.

 

Other auto and auto-linked stocks that were trading in the green included Exide Industries, Hero MotoCorp, MRF, and Ashok Leyland.